Be Hear

STEAL OUR ATTENTION

How easy it is to get around these days. As I write this I am on a plane flying over the North Pole on the way to Shenzhen, China. In the past two months I have been to Hong Kong, Bangkok, Siem Reap, Chiang Mai, Krabi, Ko Phi Phi, Beijing, Shanghai, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlantic City, New York, Baltimore, Roanoke — and now Shenzhen. Still more impressive: how easy it is to get information these days. Right now I am also looking up how to get from Hong Kong to my hotel in Shenzhen using the wifi that somehow exists in this flying hunk of metal lofting itself over the North Pole.

People often ask me, “When would I use Hooke?” and I usually shoot back with an overenthusiastic, “All the time! Upgrade the sound of your life!” But let’s take a moment to be more specific than that, because though recording hour upon hour of Mobile 3D Audio is certainly an option, Hooke is about capturing specific moments. It happens to all of us: lost in our routine, we run — or perhaps fly, in hunks of metal — from place to place, trying to check enough items off our lists to feel good about the day and our productivity, when suddenly something strikes us. A moment presents itself to us, steals our attention away from that routine. It is a moment we want to remember. So what to we do? We try to capture it. We try to make it replicable. We record it.

SOME USE CASES

A wedding ceremony. The Reverend stands in front of the nearlyweds. Family and friends are behind them, seated in anticipation of the moment when the words “I now pronounce you…” are uttered. One friend records video of the event — for posterity, for the people who weren’t there, for the wedded couple to relive when they wish.

The first live performance of a teen musician’s rock concert. He’s on stage with his band mates. The audience cheers enthusiastically. One friend records the gig for use on social media, for fans to watch on YouTube.

The last game of the season. The action on the field in front of you. The vendor yelling “Peanuts!” above and to the left. Your girlfriend ordering another hot dog below and to the right. The guy who just kicked your chair calling the pitcher a bum right behind you.

Last week I captured a road trip I took from Chicago to New York City. Listen to the difference between 2D and 3D Audio:

For the first time, we can actually record and playback audio in 3D, capturing it exactly as we heard it. This advancement in technology is made to help us enhance how we relive those special moments, not replace them.

Often times, we get caught up in our daily lives and running from place to place. We run from meeting to meeting, to rehearsals and practices, recitals and shows, home to bed and get up just to start the whole thing all over again. It’s easy to pick your phone from your pocket and just snap a quick picture or send a funny meme to your groupchat of friends. It’s also incredibly easy to get sucked up into our mobile devices and social media, as they grab our attention with continuous notifications from Facebook and the family groupchat. We scroll for hours on end (not always all at once, but as a collective) and stay glued to our phones because they connect us to other people and the web. They are simultaneously connecting us to each other while making us unresponsive to communication. As our need to be seen online and be virally popular increases, our drive for human connection and compassion decreases. We start caring less about how we present ourselves in person and more about the lifestyle we present online.

The internet in inescapable, and we are now living in a world where being online is a necessity instead of a luxury. You cannot get away from being on the internet. Communication, jobs, entertainment, it all either lives online or has a significant presence on the Internet. But that doesn’t mean that we have to live on the internet. Sure, it’s fun and can be a nice escape, but don’t forget to actually live your life. Go out and smell the fresh air, walk your dog, make memories with your friends and family.

For the first time, the things we hear can be captured the way hear them. The moments that strike us and shake us from our routines can be recorded, replicated, captured. The out that ends the game, the opening song of that first professional gig, your best friend’s “I do.”